So Soft and So Elegant

Let simple and elegant be the watchwords for this easy to knit scarf.

Our Two Together Scarf Kit matches two soft yarns into one strand for a scarf that is fashionable and warm. We have watched our inventory for two yarns that live together well. Then we pre-wind them into a ball that makes a scarf that is sort of long, but not too much.

You'll have about 7-10 hours of pleasure when you knit this scarf. Choose from Lake Huron Teal or Maple Leaf Red.

Find out more at Graywood Designs, home of specialized knitting yarns and supplies.

January KAL is Coming!

The January  KAL (Knit Along) begins on Thursday, January 2, 2014. The project will be socks knit on one needle, two at a time.

I warn you, once you learn this method, you might not go back to knitting socks on double pointed needles. The long circular needle method is so convenient and eliminates the dreaded "ladder" that forms with double point needles.

Michelle Hunter, designer and knitting educator, will be posting four weeks of lessons for this KAL. Her directions are clearly written, supported by video instruction, and easy to follow.

Michelle is calling this project a "unique two at a time sock design."  She used CoBaSi for the toe up sock design, Crimple, that we knit last January for a Knit Along.

The project takes two skeins of CoBaSi, a non-wool sock weight yarn. Michelle's sample is knit using Color #12 Iris Blue, but you will find quite a selection of CoBaSi colors on our website. Color #13, Violette, is a lovely lavender and would be a good choice. My favorite blue in CoBaSi is Color #51, a dark blue named "Raffi."

CoBaSi knits up into a soft fabric with a smooth feel. It has a slight sheen and blocks well. The yarn is 55% cotton, 15% bamboo, 8% silk, and 21% elastic nylon. It is ideal for people who want to stay away from wool and wool blends.


The Knit Along project uses a 40" circular needle, US #1 (2.5 mm), or choose a needle that gives a gauge of 8.5 stitches per inch. MIchelle suggests trying out the Addi Turbo Sock Rockets for this project. Sock Rockets have long tapered tips and a smooth, flexible cable that makes them speedy for sock knitting using the magic loop method.

Here's the LINK to CoBaSi. There are twenty colors of CoBaSi available on our website.

Here's the LINK to Addi Turbo Sock Rockets. There are five sizes and we carry all of them.

Here's the LINK to the KAL page on the KnitPurlHunter website.

I hope that you will join the Knit Along. Remember that there is no charge, lessons are posted every Thursday, and there is excellent support on Michelle's website for the project.

Order your yarn and needles in December and get ready for some January sock knitting fun.

Happy knitting!

Wanda

Using Stitch Markers

Here's a pin (talked about in a previous post) from a Vera Wang clothing tag, being used as a stitch marker on a piece of lace knitting that I have going.

You can see that the rounded end is threaded through both legs of one stitch. Often when I'm absorbed in lace knitting I find that I forget what row I started on so I place a marker at the start of a knitting session.

That way, when I get up for a cup of coffee or a stretch, after 20-30 minutes of knitting, I can see my progress very clearly.

It's always good to know that an hour of knitting produced two more inches, or more, of knitted fabric.

I use split ring markers, too. I like how easy it is to place one and, then, to remove it. Split ring markers are great for marking the starting stitch in a round of knitting on a circular needle.

You will find this language often in the directions for the knitting designs that I write:

Mark first stitch of round using split ring marker. 

Move the marker up every 3-5 rows so that it follows the knitting.

Happy knitting,

Wanda

A Red Sweater for A Holiday

There are two great red sweater holidays -- Christmas and The Fourth of July. Here's Hannah's red sweater from Fourth of July 2011. She was almost two and this Elizabeth Zimmermann design was the perfect little cardi for a summer coverup.

The pattern is Baby Sweater on Two Needles (month of February project) from "Knitters Almanac" by Elizabeth Zimmermann. I knit it back and forth on a circular needle using Brown Sheep's Lamb's Pride Superwash Worsted. The color is "Shane's Red." The lace pattern is gull lace. I found some sparkly red buttons.

Superwash wool is great for kids and for cardis. The sweater is worn over another garment, so there is no "wool worry," and the cardi can go into the washer and dry flat. Perfect.

Christmas is coming and this is a delightful project that can easily be finished by the holidays.

Brown Sheep Lambs Pride Superwash Worsted -- I used about a skein and a half.

Addi Turbo needles -- I used US #7, 24 inch circular to knit back and forth.

Knitter's Almanac on Amazon -- available in paperback.

More about this project on Wanda's Ravelry page

Softie Hat -- A FREE Pattern

It's exciting to introduce a new knitting pattern to the Graywood Designs knitting line. And, for the first time, one of our patterns is being offered as a FREE download on Ravelry.

Softie Hat is a a lightweight, fine gauge hat for women in one size. It is knit out of sock weight yarn, also called fingering yarn and uses almost all of a 100 gram skein of yarn.

The fit is snug around the ears, but loose in the body of the hat, so this is a design that won't destroy a hairstyle or flatten your bangs.

Softie Hat pulls down over the forehead for those really windy cold times. Or wear it casually tucked back for a stylish look.

The yarn that you choose will dictate whether the hat is sort of tight or a snug fit around the ears.

The Softie Hat design uses a small needle gauge for the ribbing. For the body of the hat, there are increases and a change to a larger needle to get the looser, softer fit.

Multicolored sock yarns (there are scads of these lovely yarns on the market now) knit up beautifully in this design and, for once, the yarn shows, for, instead of knitting two socks for your feet, you'll be knitting a special hat for your head!

Here's the LINK to the free Softie Hat download.

And here is a LINK to all of the sock yarns on our website, any of which will make a lovely Softie Hat for you.

Happy knitting,

Wanda

An Unlikely Stitch Marker

I found this unusually shaped safety pin attached to the last Vera Wang top that I bought at Target. The pin is sharp, but really stands out when I use it as a stitch marker for my knitting.

Isn't it neat to find something unlikely that works with knitting?!

Luscious Colors in Lanaloft Handpaints

There are some luscious colors in Brown Sheep's Lanaloft yarns. Made in both worsted and sport weights, this yarn is available in selected colors on our website.

Lanaloft is 100% wool and is single ply. It handles a lot like Lamb's Pride worsted which is also single ply, but Lanaloft does not have mohair so it has far less of the soft haze of Lamb's Pride.

Choose Lanaloft for your holiday knitting gifts. Lanaloft makes lovely hats, scarves, and mittens. Many of the colors coordinate well with the colors of outerwear that are worn in the winter. The yarn has a subtle striping effect, a lot like the sock yarns that knitters have come to love.

With the artful handpaint colors, you will have created a very special gift indeed.

Lanaloft worsted weight: 4.5 stitches per inch, US #8 needle; 100 gram,160 yard pull skein

Lanaloft sport weight: 6 stitches per inch. US #5 needle; 50 gram, 145 yards; pull skein

May we suggest a pattern?

The Zelda Hat, by Graywood Designs, uses one skein of Lanaloft Handpaint worsted.

Turn A Square Number Seven

Riff Blue color should be a tad bit more toward a denim-ish gray

I must be crazy about Jared Flood's hat pattern because I started another one. This Turn A Square is for Bill, my helpful friend who knows enough to repair my email disasters when I start tinkering with my laptop or a Kindle or mobile phone.

The main color yarn is Brown Sheep's Lamb's Pride Superwash worsted in Riff Blue (Color SW45). The accent color is Fortissima Socka Mit Bamboo, Color 103, used double. I like to do these hats on Addi Turbo 16" circular needles. Jared's pattern suggests two sizes, US #5 and US #7, one for the ribbing and one for the body of the hat.

The Riff Blue is available on our website (where I called it "Ruff Blue," by mistake!) Notice that the color is a tough one to photograph. It will not be as blue as shown in the photo. Think more denim. The light gray sock yarn is a leftover yarn. It is 60% superwash wool, 25% bamboo, and 15% nylon. It's in the Discontinued Yarn on the website, but there is only one ball left and it is 50% off the regular price.

Turn A Square Number Four

This hat will be the seventh one that I have knit. Max, Finn, Peter, Clay, and John all have Turn A Squares. The sixth Turn A Square, in pink for a girl, is in the decreasing stage. And this hat, for my friend Bill, is Numero Seven.

Turn A Square Number Five

I use the Lamb's Pride Super Wash because I absolutely love the feel of knitting this yarn and then, after washing the hat, the yarn plumps up and the hat is so soft and warm. The hat rolls up and tucks into a pocket so it is ready for windy or rough weather days. It's a great pattern.

Onward and upward with the Turn A Square hats!

Copyright 2013
Wanda Hayes Eichler

Turn A Square -- a FREE pattern on Ravelry

Another Turn A Square Blog Post

A Pause in the Blog

Dear Graywood Knits blog readers,

I want to let you know, in a few words, that I have been away from the Graywood Designs website and Graywood Knits blog for almost two months now, due to the death of my father, Stanley C. F. Hayes, in early May. Dad died on May 6th, a Monday, and the funeral was the following Saturday.

I am one of seven children and we all made it home to Wisconsin to be at Dad's side in those last few days. Dad had just turned 92 and was living alone, but with daily assistance for personal care and meals. We are fortunate to have had him through all of these years.

Some of you know that I write a daily blog that has been focused on my Dad. Since January of 2010, Dad received a daily email with the blog post. I would write a bit about something that I thought he might enjoy reading about, and I always included a photo. It was my way of staying in touch with him, even though I am in Michigan and he lived in Wisconsin.

You can find those posts at the blog, "From Under The Willow." In these days after Dad's death, I am still writing the Willow Blog. I am not sure where it will take me, but the daily discipline of putting words together with photography is an enriching experience.

I can testify, too, to the comfort of knitting in the midst of sorrow. I knit several baby hats during my weeks in Wisconsin and kept a summer scarf design on my needles. There have been several weeks in June now when I laid knitting aside in favor of gardening and art journaling. But the knitting always beckons and soothes.

Just the other night I took another hat off of the needles and worked in the ends. It's good to get done with a knitting project and move on to something new. I'm waiting for that "moving on" time as I grieve for my father. Knitting, I can finish. This weight of emotion moves more slowly.

So, I am back at the blog. There is a new Knit Along coming up on July 4th. That's what the next post will be about.

Again, thanks for following my knitting endeavors. I hope you will look at the website and, gee, maybe even place and order now and then.

Regards,

Wanda

A Lace Edging: First Week of KAL

Ridgely Shawlette -- A Knit Along -- 3 repeats done

The first few repeats of the lace edging on the Ridgely shawlette proved to be an exercise in lace edging. I have done a lot of lace knitting before but have not attempted a garter stitch edging.

I'm tickled with the results of my knitting so far. I'm using the CoBaSi yarn on a US#6 needle. My colors are gold and camel, since I'm planning to wear the scarf in the fall. Michelle Hunter's pattern uses one ball of main color for the lace edging, while another ball of main color and the contrasting color are working into a garter stripe shawl.

You can see the three balls of yarn in the top photo, as well as the slight increasing that is already building in the shawl part of the knitting. This is fascinating knitting. You'll have to concentrate and mark off rows. The Knit Along makes for a great way to learn something new and add to your "bag 'o' knitting tricks."

Nine repeats finished

Here's the shawlette after seven repeats are complete. The knitted fabric has wonderful drape and I am looking forward to wrapping up in my lace knitting very soon.

Happy Knitting!

Wanda

The Forever Scarf

I started a ribbon lace scarf using a design from Knitty several years ago. I would work on it and put it away; get it out again; put it away. You know the story of unfinished knitting projects, I'm sure.

The scarf is finished! I took the knitting along on a trip to Disney last month and got really, really motivated. Here I am, knitting on the scarf at our Disney hotel. Yes, that is my Element wrap that I am wearing around my shoulders as I knit in the cool outdoor Disney setting.

And here I am, wearing the scarf with a jeans jacket, linen pants and my usual black travel v-neck for an outdoor barbecue event at the convention we attended. I have probably pulled this scarf around my neck fifteen times since finishing it. I absolutely love this piece of knitting and am so glad that I took the time to make it.

I have a skein and a half of Sterling Silk and Silver yarn in this scarf. I used a set of vintage Boye metal needles, needles that I have had since high school days. The pattern is Lace Ribbon Scarf by Veronik Avery from the Spring 2008 issue of Knitty.

Great pattern, compelling knitting, lovely scarf.

Free lace ribbon scarf pattern is HERE

Sterling Silk and Silver yarn is on SALE HERE.

CoBaSi Yarn at 20% Off

Mmm, here are bags of CoBaSi, the non-wool sock yarn that we have added to our website! This yarn is the first 2013 Featured Yarn and is available at a 20% off discount.

The first KAL (Knit Along) of 2013 uses CoBaSi for a toe-up sock pattern that is a delight to knit.  The socks take two skeins of yarn. You'll have a pair of non-wool handknit socks for less than twenty dollars. That's a good deal for knitters.

We carry twenty lovely colors of this fine yarn.  There is a great range of colors. Some of our favorites are pumpkin (069), moss green (008) and yellow gold (057). There are four different blues ranging from soft blue to a medium navy.

Order some today and enjoy using CoBaSi.

The Heel Is Done -- KAL Week 3

The KAL (Knit Along) for Crimple, a toe-up sock design, is finished through Week 3. Michelle Hunter, designer from KnitPurlHunter will publish Week 4 today and I will be ready to finish my sock. I've been using a long circular needle (2.5 mm or US#1) and doing the magic loop method of sock knitting.

Here's the sock with Week 1 (cast on and knit the toe), Week 2 (knit the foot), and Week 3 (knit the heel) completed in the CoBaSi yarn that we are carrying at Graywood Designs.

Now is a great time to begin this project since you can see all four steps of sock knitting and will know just where your knitting is headed. The CoBaSi is a non-wool yarn that flows through your fingers softly and evenly. It is a joy to knit..

Buy the yarn HERE -- Graywood Designs. We carry 20 colors! If you live in the Pigeon area, you can stop by our shipping office at 40 South Main on Mondays to purchase this yarn. Anything we carry on the website (yarn, needles, patterns, books, GW publications) can be purchased in Pigeon. The office is open 10 am to 4 pm. It is a good idea to call ahead -- 453-2311 locally or 888-453-4554 Toll Free.

CoBaSi is a 2013 Featured Yarn and, as such, is 20% off.

Follow the KAL HERE -- KnitPurlHunter.

Read more about the Knit Along HERE -- Graywood Knits blog

Happy sock knitting!

Wanda

Toe-up Sock KAL (Knit Along)

Join the Knit Along (KAL) from our friends at KnitPurlHunter and learn how to knit a toe-up sock! We are carrying the yarn used in this project, CoBaSi, a non-wool sock weight yarn, on the Graywood Designs website. You will need three things: 1) Internet access and some time to knit; 2) 2 skeins of CoBaSi yarn; 3) 2.75mm needles. That's it!

A Knit Along is a delightful change of pace from the hurry scurry of the holiday months. You will learn new knitting techniques and be making a practical pair of socks. What fun!

Here are some of the specifics about participating in a Knit Along:

• There are four lessons, each posted on the four Thursdays in January.
• The pattern includes photos and online video instructions.
• There is no fee to participate. The KAL is FREE.
• Designer Michelle Hunter will reveal a photo of the project in the last step. Until then, you can watch your knitting progress and anticipate what it will look it when finished.
• You can enter a contest to win cool prizes from Skacel, the distributor of the yarn. Find out about the prizes by reading the Contest Overview on the Skacel website. 
• You  need two skeins of CoBaSi. We offer a 20% discount on this yarn!
• You need 2.75 mm size needle(s). You can use double pointed needles, two circulars, or the magic loop technique (long circular needle).
• We suggest Clover bamboo double point needles OR Addi Turbo circular needles.
• The KAL started Jan. 3. A second post appeared on Jan. 10. Order your yarn NOW and enjoy the KAL!.

CoBaSi Colors

We are carrying 20 colors of CoBaSi on our website. Here are some of them.

We know that we are a bit late at doing the Knit Along, but we are not letting that stop us from knitting. 

We are expecting our full shipment of CoBaSi on Monday, Jan. 14th and are taking orders right now for this new yarn Check out the rest of the colors at Graywood Designs and then join us as we knit along with KnitPurlHunter and make toe-up socks!